How to Record Your Screen on Windows 11 for Free

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Capture your screen using Snipping Tool, Xbox Game Bar, and more

Co-authored by Megaera Lorenz, PhD Reviewed by Stan Kats

Last Updated: December 25, 2025 Fact Checked

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Snipping Tool

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Xbox Game Bar

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PowerPoint

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Third-Party Screen Recorders

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FAQ

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Video

If you want to record your screen in Windows 11, there are several simple options. The easiest way is to use built-in utilities like Snipping Tool and Xbox Game Bar. You can also capture video of your screen with PowerPoint or a third-party app or browser extension. Read on to learn how to record your screen using these easy methods. We also answer your most common questions and offer troubleshooting tips.

Easy Ways to Record Your Screen in Windows 11

Record your screen for free using built-in tools like Snipping Tool or Xbox Game Bar.
If you have Microsoft PowerPoint, you can record your screen from within the app and save the recording as a separate file.
If you’re looking for a screen recording tool with additional bells and whistles, there are several third-party options.

Section 1 of 5:

Snipping Tool

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1
Open the
Start menu and search for snipping tool. Snipping Tool is an app that comes with Windows, although you can also download it from the Microsoft Store. Search for it in the Start menu and click on the result to launch the app.^{[1]
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- You can also open Snipping Tool using the keyboard shortcut Windows key + Shift + S.
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Click the
Record button. It’s at the top of the Snipping Tool window.

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3
Click + New. Once you’ve selected the Record option, click + New on the left side of the toolbar. You can also press Ctrl + N on your keyboard.
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Click and drag to select the part of the screen you want to record. A crosshair icon will appear on the screen. Click and drag to create a box around the portion of the screen you’re trying to capture. You can select the full screen if you like.
5
Select your audio preferences. While Snipping Tool didn’t originally have the option to record sound, that function has since been added.
- To record with microphone input, click the microphone icon at the top of the Snipping Tool window and select which mic you want to use. You might be prompted to give Snipping Tool permission to access your microphone.
- Click the icon that looks like a computer monitor with a speaker symbol at the bottom to enable or disable system audio.
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Click Start. You’ll see a 3-second countdown on the screen, and then Snipping Tool will start recording.
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Select Stop when you’re done recording. You also have the option to pause and resume your recording.
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Edit, save, or share your recording. Once you press Stop, a window will open with your recording. Click Edit in Clipchamp at the top right side of the window if you want to edit your video. If you’d rather edit later, click the Save icon at the top right corner to save your screen recording, or select the Copy icon (it looks like two overlapping rectangles) to copy the video to your clipboard.
- Snipping Tool saves screen recordings in MP4 format. You’ll need to convert the video with a different app (like VLC Media Player or Handbrake) if you need another format.
- By default, screen recordings captured in Snipping Tool save to C:\Users\USERNAME\Videos\Screen Recordings.

Section 2 of 5:

Xbox Game Bar

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1
Press ⊞ Win+G to launch the Xbox Game Bar. You can also open the Start menu and search for xbox game bar.^{[2]
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Click the
Camera icon if you don’t see the Capture widget. When you open the Game Bar, you should see several small windows (widgets) around your screen, including a Capture widget with various screen capturing and recording tools. If you don’t see it, click the camera icon in the toolbar at the top of the screen.
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Adjust your sound options. Use the Audio widget to change your audio settings. If you don’t see this widget, click the icon that looks like a speaker in the menu bar at the top of the screen. Use the Mix tab to adjust the balance of audio from different applications that are running as you record. Use the Voice tab to select your audio communication settings, including your default input mic and mic volume.^{[3]
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- You can toggle your mic on or off for screen recording purposes by clicking the microphone icon in the Capture widget.
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Click the Record button in the Capture widget. It’s a square button with a solid white circle in the middle.
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Click the Stop button to stop the recording. Once you start recording, you’ll see a small toolbar at the top right side of your screen. Click the blue icon with a white square in the middle to stop recording.
- You can also press Windows key + G to open the Xbox Game Bar, then click the Stop button in the Capture widget.
6
Click See my captures to view your screen recordings. It’s at the bottom of the Capture widget.
- If you’ve captured more than one video, use the menu bar on the left side of the window that opens to browse your captures.
- Once you select a capture, you can play the video in the viewer, click Open file location to view it in File Explorer, or click the Delete icon to delete the capture.

Section 3 of 5:

PowerPoint

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If you want to include a screen recording in a PowerPoint presentation, you can do so from within the app. You can even save your screen recording as a separate file if you want to view it outside of PowerPoint. To get started, navigate to the slide where you want to insert the recording.^{[4]
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Microsoft Support
Technical support and product information from Microsoft.

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Click the Insert tab. It’s in the ribbon menu at the top of the screen.
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Select Screen Recording. A control dock will appear at the top of the screen.
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Click Select Area. A crosshair cursor will appear.
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Click and drag the cursor to select your recording area. The smallest possible area you can select is 64x64 pixels. You can also select the whole screen by pressing Windows key + Shift + F.
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Adjust your audio and mouse cursor options. Toggle system audio on or off by clicking Audio on the control dock. You can also toggle the option to record your mouse cursor on or off by clicking Record Pointer.
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Click Record to start recording. You can pause or stop the recording with the Pause and Stop controls in the control dock. If the control dock disappears during recording, you can make it reappear by moving your cursor up to the top of the screen.
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Right-click the video to save or edit it. Once your video is captured, you can open a menu of options by right-clicking the video. From here, you can:
- Select Start to choose how the video starts during your presentation (e.g., automatically when the slide opens or when you click on the video).
- Click Style to change the look of the video.
- Choose Save Media As to save the screen recording as a separate file that you can access outside of PowerPoint.
- Choose Trim to adjust the length of the video.

Section 4 of 5:

Third-Party Screen Recorders

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There are numerous screen recording apps that offer additional features beyond the built-in options that come with Windows. Some popular free options include OBS Studio, ScreenRec, and ShareX.
Extensions with screen recording capability can be a good option if you want to capture something in a browser tab or window. Some of these extensions are completely free, while others require a subscription to unlock all the features. Some popular options include Screencastify (Edge), Awesome Screenshot & Screen Recorder (Firefox), and Loom (Chrome).

Section 5 of 5:

Frequently Asked Questions

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How can I record my entire screen in Windows 11? This depends on the screen recording software you’re using. For example, in Snipping Tool, you can simply click and drag the selection crosshairs to capture your entire screen. Some apps, like PowerPoint, have full-screen selection shortcuts like Windows key + Shift + F.
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What is the shortcut for the screen recorder in Windows 11? If you select a portion of the screen to record, you can then press Windows key + Shift + R to launch the screen recording tool.^{[5]
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Microsoft Support
Technical support and product information from Microsoft.

Go to source} You can also launch Xbox Game Bar with Windows key + G, then press Windows key + Alt + R to start or stop screen recording.^{[6]
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Why isn’t screen recording working? There are several issues that can cause problems with screen recording software on Windows.
- Digital Rights Management (DRM) issues: If you’re trying to screen record protected material, like a movie on Netflix, you might end up with a blank screen or a soundless recording.
- Outdated drivers: Make sure your graphics card drivers are up to date.
- Hardware acceleration issues: If you’re trying to record something in a browser, you might need to turn off hardware acceleration to get it to work properly.
- Faulty app settings: Some screen recording apps are more user-friendly than others.
  - If you’re not picking up any sound, make sure you have your app set to record system sounds. Check your input source settings if you’re using a mic.
  - In more complex screen recorders, like OBS, you can end up with a blank screen if you don’t have the correct GPU selection settings enabled. Check out this guide from OBS for more details.